The National Cyber and Encryption Agency (BSSN) confirmed that two National Data Center (PDN) facilities were hit by a ransomware cyberattack. As a result, immigration inspection services at five checkpoints including Indonesia’s main airport Soekarno Hatta, the licensing services at the Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment (CMMAI) and digital services at the National Public Procurement Agency (LKPP) were paralyzed on June 20.
On June 25, the government regained access to their database and slowly resumed services. Communications and Information Minister Budi Arie Setiadi stated that the government had never agreed to pay the USD 8 million ransom. He claimed that public data remains safe, and the government has taken appropriate steps to fix the impacted services. Approximately 210 databases that belong to central government and regional administration institutions were compromised.
As the fastest-growing regional digital market in the world with an estimate of $1 trillion contribution to regional GDP over the next ten years, ASEAN has increasingly faced a high number of cybercrimes, ranging from data breaches, ransomware attacks and cryptojacking. This year, ASEAN is the number one target for ransomware with the number of cases up to 52% worldwide – most of which were detected in Thailand. ASEAN’s efforts to strengthen regional cybersecurity cooperation are ongoing. USABC efforts in this space have urged ASEAN to adjust its efforts to promote greater regional cyber resilience to more effectively mitigate such threats.
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